Hey Spanishbuddha!!

Have a safe and enjoyable trip!!! Sure hope you can keep us posted while you are there!! From the pics Larry posted you sure need to stay warm!!!!

cindylee55:

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I was diagnosed last week with with DD and I have an appt. on April 4 with Dr. Seegenschmeidt in Hamburg I can hardly wait to get there and get the treatment and get this disease in remission. Please record your trip and give any pointers you may have on where to stay, what to do, etc. I am flying from Texas to Hamburg.

Edited 02/21/11 01:21

spanishbuddha:

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Yes arrived today and it was -4C, remains of snow around, but sunny. I came prepared :-)

There's a surprising, to me, number of families out and about on bicycles. Brrrrr......

My first thing was to buy a 'Hamburg HVV card' in the airport for €24 which allows me to travel on trains, buses and metro for the rest of the week. At this price I get to travel central and outer zones, including ferries, but there are cheaper ones if your staying in central Hamburg. There are other card options too which include tourist package tours, but I will do my own thing this time. I hope to take in a piano concert Monday evening and until then am just chilling (!) and visiting the clinic.

The hotel has a grand piano, and I already asked if I can have a tinkle. My practise tinkle isn't really musical so maybe in the day when there's not too many people around.

Edited 02/21/11 00:43

My appointment and treatment went pretty much the same way as has been reported here before.

Briefly: 

I turned up at the clinic, introduced myself in German , the receptionist asked me in English if English would be easier so I said yes. I was asked to wait in a small waiting room and fill out a general information form. There were quite a few other people/patients coming and going whilst I waited.

Prof S appeared in person after a short wait and took me upstairs to his office. He was very chatty and pleasant. Then after giving some background history he examined my feet first, then my hands, marking them in pen as he went describing what he was looking for and finding and asked me to feel for myself .

I was surprised that my foot without plantar fasciitis had signs of early LD whereas the PF foot had none. It was too early and not active so treatment not recommended. But I now know what to look for and how to check for the future. The Professor uses a scoring system to decide whether to treat or not. 

As expected he recommended RT for my left hand where there are active nodules and some cords. One of the lumps I had diagnosed as a nodule was in fact a small ganglion under the skin and he showed me how to differentiate. So an accurate examination by an experienced physician is important. He also found some nodules and cords in the other hand, where I had been unsure, but recommended no treatment for them at this time.

All of this was documented, including copies made of my hands,  an acetate sheet showing the range of RT to be used and the prescribed treatment dose(s). He also took photo's of my feet and hands with the pen markings. 

One other thing was that he told me to stop taking Glucosamine and Chrondroitin, as mentioned elsewhere in this site. I had ignored this up to now as the stories seemed just anecdotal. Carry on with the fish oil though.  Finally a short  discussion of possible side effects, payment and a follow up appointment with him later this week, and that was it except I was asked to return later in the day for first treatment of the left hand.

RT treatment later took about 5 minutes, some positioning under a mask with the Professor present, one minute of 'zap' and all done until tomorrow. I can go in at any time between 08:00 and 15:00 when they will fit me in. 

Took in the piano concert this evening. The pianist was very good and I had a good view of his (hands) technique. I didn't care for the music but no matter. 

Hallo spanishbudda ...

Congratulation for your first day ! How was the concert ?? Do you have rented a bike ??

Good idea from the PROF, to stop taking Glucosamine and Chrondroitin !
He did the same with me and my impression was, that he is possibly right, because about 6 monthe after starting the medication my LD started to become quite "active" - Would like to know myself what does it really affect ? Another drug which affects the intensity of LD or DD is phenobarbital which is often used for epilepsy prophylaxis ...

Apparently the PROF appeared quite "professional" to you !? Have good week, Larry

Edited 02/21/11 23:26